Method of finishing flooring and other wood



W. N. BELK Nov. 18, 1947.

METHOD OF FINISHING FLOORING AND OTHER WOOD Original Filed Sept. 27. .1943

5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. m )2 w Nov. 18, 1947. w. N. BELK 2, 3

I METHOD OF FINISHING FLOORING AND OTHER WOOD Original Filed Sept. ,27, 1945 a Sheets-Sheet 2 INVEN TOR.

Nov. 18, 1947. W. N. BELK 2,431,225

METHOD OF FINISHING FLOORING AND OTHER WOOD Original Filed Sept. 27, 1943 3 Sheets-Sheet} IN V EN TOR.

Patented Nov. 18, 1947 METHUD GF FINISHING FLOORING AN OTHER WOOD William N. Belk, Rockford, Ill.

Original application September 27, 1943, Serial Divided and this application March 29, 1944, Serial No. 528,601

2 Claims.

This application is a division of my co-pending application, Serial No. 504,077, filed September 2'7, 1943.

This invention relates to a novel method of finishing floorin and other wood so that the flooring, for example, is ready for use, the wood being dipped for moisture-proofing, termite and powder post beetle proofing, as well as resistance to fungus, and being thereafter dried, waxed, buffed and polished on all sides. The treatment is applicable to oak, maple, beech, pecan and hickory flooring, and all soft wood lumber in flooring, ceiling, drop siding, finish and plywoods.

The salient feature of my invention lies in the fact that the intake leg of the generally U-shaped machine includes an immersion tank into which the pieces are discharged directly from a sander ,or sanders and are then fed onto a conveyor for passage endwise through a wiper for removal of excess liquid that is conducted back to the tank. In that way the pieces have the dust rinsed off in the immersion and whatever small amount of dust might still adhere after the immersion is more or less certain of removal in the passage of the pieces between the brushes of the Wiper. The pieces, therefore, emerge from the wiper in the best possible condition for drying, there being no surface dirt or dust and no surplus liquid that would interfere with even drying.

Another important feature of my invention lies in the fact that the brushes provided in the wiper unit operate on all four sides so as to remove any dirt or dust that might still adhere after the immersion, and make certain that no liquid is letf in the grooves or alon the tongues which would interfere with thorough drying of the wood before it reaches the waxing and polishing unit, all excess liquid, as stated before, being conducted back to the immersion tank so that there is no waste.

In the generally U-shaped machine operated in accordance with my improved method, the cross portion includes the drier, and is wide enough to permit the feeding of pieces sidewise therethrough, as distinguished from the endwise feeding through driers in earlier machines, and in that way the whole piece is subjected to drying simultaneously and there is eliminated any likelihood of breakage of lamps. The outgoing leg of the machine has a conveyor that feeds the dried pieces endwise through a waxing and polishing unit.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a plan view of a machine operating in accordance with my improved method;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the immersion tank, taken on the line 2-2 of Fi 1;

Fig, 3 is a vertical section through the drier, taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1, and

Figs. 4 and 5 are a plan view and side view of the wiper unit.

The same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts throughout the views.

Referring first to Fig. l, the reference numeral l0 designates the immersion tank forming a portion of the intake leg of the generally U-shaped machine, and at II is indicated a sander from which the pieces I2 of wood flooring, or other lumber, are discharged into the immersion tank. Second sander is indicated in dotted lines at Ma at the opposite end of the tank, inasmuch as the pieces to be treated may be discharged into the tank from both ends, machines of the present type having been built and satisfactorily operated upon as much as four thousand feet of wood flooring per hour. Incidentally, these machines require only eight men per machine, whereas the previous in-line type of wood finishing machines usually required about sixteen men and the production on those machines was usually only about fifteen hundred feet per hour. The pieces I2 are completely immersed in the bath [3, and are carried upwardly from the bath on a conveyor [4 and deposited on a conveyor i5 for passage through the wiper unit I6 preliminary to the placing of these pieces on another conveyor l'l operating at right angles to the conveyor I5 for passage through the drier iii. A drain is extends from the tank l0 under the wiper unit it and serves to conduct back to the tank the surplus liquid removed from the pieces passing through the wiper unit, so that there is no waste. Another conveyor 20 operates at right angles to the outlet end of the conveyor [1, parallel to the conveyor l5, and conveys the pieces endwise through waxing and polishing unit 2 l Finally the finished pieces, waxed and polished ready for use, are received on a table 22 at the end of the outgoing leg of the generally U-shaped machine, The U-shape is of considerable advantage, not only from the standpoint that it permits installation of the machine in a building of ordinary size and proportions but also because with the compact arrangement about half as many men are needed in the operation of the machine. For example, the in-line design of previous machines required a building 500 it. long, producing 1500 feet of finished lumber per hour with 16 men, whereas the present machine has been installed in a 34 ft. by 64 ft. building and produced 4000 feet of finished lumber per hour with only 8 men.

The immersion tank It], as illustrated in Fig. 2, has a generally rectangular sump portion 23, on one side of which is a vertical wall 24 and a chute 25 extending from the top thereof the full length of the tank to cause the pieces to slide down into the preservative solution and be thoroughly wetted. An inclined drain board 26 projects up- 3 wardly at a small angle from the bottom of the sump 23 on the opposite side from the wall 24 to a point beyond the conveyor I5, where a vertical side wall 21 is provided, which with the opposed end walls 28 and 29 completes the tank. The conveyor I4 has sprockets for driving the same mounted on longitudinally extending shafts 30 and SI, one of which is suitably driven to cause the conveyor to run in the direction indicated by the arrows for continuously feeding the wetted pieces I2 from the bath I3 onto the conveyor I5, in the manner indicated in Figs. 1 and 2. The drive means has not been shown, but it will be understood that the conveyor I4 will operate continuously throughout the operation of the rest of the machine. Most of the excess liquid on the pieces is drained from them as they are carried up on the conveyor chains I4 and when they land on the conveyor I5. A longitudinally extending strip 32 is provided between the discharge end of the conveyor I4 and the conveyor I5, as shown in Fig. 2, to guide the pieces onto the conveyor I and eliminate likelihood of pieces dropping between the conveyors and being returned to the bath. The pieces will be stacked on the conveyor I5 by an operator in the event they are fed to the conveyor faster than they are removed by the conveyor I5 and passed through the wiper unit I6. This end 33 of the tank In in which the conveyor I5 operates has for that reason been called the magazine. The conveyor I5 continuously feeds the lowermost pieces from the stack in the magazine into the Wiper unit I6 and, as stated before, a drain I9 projecting from the end of the tank I 3 under the wiper unit returns to the tank whatever excess liquid is removed from the pieces in their passage through the wiper unit, thus eliminating any Waste of preservative solution and at the same time insuring uniformly wetted pieces being fed to the drier, so that there will be no difiiculty in drying the pieces uniformly and completely preparator to the final waxing and polishing. In passing, it should be clear that the complete immersion of the pieces in the preservative solution is far more beneficial than merely applying by spray nozzles some of this solution to the top surface, as was done in earlier machines. This treatment gives 100% protection,

, whereas the other treatment gave substantially less than 50% protection. Furthermore, the complete immersion of the pieces right after they leave the sander is of advantage in rinsing the sander dust oif, so that no intermediate step of brushing or otherwise cleaning is necessary, and if any dust still adheres when the wetted pieces enter the wiper unit, that small amount is certain of removal in passing through the brushes in the wiper unit at the same time the remaining excess liquid is removed.

The wiper unit I6 is also known as the brushing unit, inasmuch as the wiping is done with brushes. There are four brushes 3 1, 35, 36, and 37. The brushes 34 and 35 are horizontally disposed above and below the path of travel of the lumber, in a space between the conveyor I5 and its companion conveyor I5a, in order to brush off the top and bottom surfaces of the pieces as they pass through. The brushes 36 and 37 are on vertical axes and are disposed adjacent the brushes 34 and 35 on opposite sides of the line of travel, so that one brush will work in the grooved portion and the other on the tongued portion of a piece of flooring, for example. The brushes 34 and 35 have their bearings vertically adjustable on the upright frame members 38 to suit different thicknesses of work and to compensate for wear. Sheet metal shields 40' and M are provided over the brush 3 3 and around the outer sides of the brushes 3%? and 37, to catch whatever liquid might otherwise be sprayed from these brushes in the operation of the machine and discharge it into the drain I9 disposed therebeneath.

Belt and pulley drives are illustrated for the 3 four brushes, and also a chain and sprocket drive 32 for transmitting drive from the incoming conveyor E5 to the outgoing conveyor I5a. Feed rollers 53 disposed above the end portion of the conveyor I5 serve to reduce slippage, and they with the conveyor I5 more or less positively feed the pieces through between the brushes. Another feed roll M cooperates with the adjacent end portion of the conveyor I5a to assist in the feeding through of the work. It should be evident from this description that the wetted pieces leaving the wiper unit I6 will not only be thoroughly cleaned by reason of their passage between the brushes, but all surplus liquid will be removed and returned to the sump 23 by the drain I 9.

An operator stationed at the far end of the conveyor i5a, remote from the Wiper unit I6, removes the pieces I2 and places them on the conveyor I l for passage sidewise through the drier I 8, as indicated in Fig. 1. A hood 45 together with side walls 46 is adjustable vertically with respect to frame members 47, as by means of jack screws 48, to adjust a horizontal bank of infra-red lamps 49 vertically with respect to the conveyor H, to suit dilferent thicknesses of work and also to insure correct drying without danger of scorching, bearing in mind the length of travel of the pieces through the drier and, of course, the speed of travel as well as the drying characteristics of the preservative solution used. The fact that the pieces I2 are fed sidewise through the drier is important, because it eliminates a serious objection to the in-line design of machine, namely, that a piece getting askew when fed endwise through the drier was apt to break a whole row or more of expensive infra-red lamps in the positive feeding of the work through the drier, before an operator could do anything about it. Such breakage is positively prevented with the present design, and each piece is simultaneously subjected to drying throughout the full length thereof, so that the drying time between the entrance and exit ends is more easily checked and adjustments can more readily be made than where the pieces are fed through endwise.

The pieces are hot when they leave the drier and, therefore, cannot be handled. For that reason the conveyor 20, disposed at right angles to the conveyor I 2', is on a lower level, as indicated in Fig. 3, and the dried pieces drop off the conveyor I 7 onto the conveyor 2! for passage endwise through the waxing and polishing unit 2|. The conveyor 23 extends into the feed-in end of the unit 2i for the waxing and polishing of the pieces in the manner fully illustrated and described in the parent application, the finished pieces being conveyed from the machine on the conveyor 0a onto the table 22.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of the objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims have been drawn to cover all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. The method of finishing lumber, such as flooring, which includes the steps of sanding the 7 previously dried pieces, then immersing the pieces in a preservative solution whereby to rinse off sander dust at the same time that all surfaces are coated for protection of the wood, then removing excess liquid from the surfaces and also any dust or dirt still adhering to the surfaces after the immersion by passage of the pieces endwise through a wiper, and thereafter drying the pieces by passage sidewise through a heating oven that is heated by a bank of infra-red lamps supported in a substantially horizontal plane above the surface of the wood.

2. The method of finishing lumber, such as flooring, which includes the steps of sanding the previously dried pieces, then immersing the pieces in a preservative solution whereby to rinse oiT sander dust at the same time that all surfaces are coated for protection of the Wood, then removing excess liquid from the surfaces and also any dust or dirt still adhering to the surfaces REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 966,988 Eaten .Aug. 9, 1910 992,918 Smith May 23, 1911 1,732,420 Rice Oct. 22, 1929 2,341,161 Partee et a1. Feb. 8, 1944 

